


Black Siren: Salvation

by ArlyssTolero



Series: Black Siren [3]
Category: Arrow (TV 2012), The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Dark, F/M, Torture
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-12
Updated: 2020-06-12
Packaged: 2021-03-04 05:34:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,912
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24688465
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArlyssTolero/pseuds/ArlyssTolero
Summary: Dinah Laurel Lance of Earth-2 has been abducted by a speedster, and Oliver Queen is furious at the continued interference of Team Flash in the affairs of his team and city. Traveling in force to S.T.A.R. Labs, Team Arrow and their leader confront Team Flash and discover the identity of the abducting speedster, leading Oliver Queen and Thea Queen to jump universes in order to save Dinah from Earth-2's Robert Queen.
Relationships: Earth-2 Laurel Lance/Oliver Queen, Oliver Queen & Team Arrow, Oliver Queen & Team Flash
Series: Black Siren [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1708699
Comments: 20
Kudos: 37





	Black Siren: Salvation

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I don’t own Arrow or The Flash.
> 
> A/N: At long last, a sequel to “Black Siren: Redemption”. I finally got some inspiration today for it and while it is shorter than BSR, I’ll remind everyone that that was originally a sixteen-chapter fic with 1K word chapters or thereabouts.
> 
> One of the reasons I wanted to work on this story was that I wanted to try and work with Earth-2 Laurel again, because I do want to do some stories with her going forward as, post-4x18, she’s the best chance we had for Lauriver and there’s only so many ideas I could do with Oliver/Sara that wouldn’t be better with Oliver/E-2 Laurel. So I wanted to get back into being able to write this character and reclaim her from the bullshit Guggenheim and Schwartz shoveled on us.
> 
> If for some reason you haven’t read “Black Siren: Origins” or “Black Siren: Redemption” before this, then go and do so now. This story will *not* make sense if you haven’t read those.

**Earth-1**

Oliver Queen was filled with a sort of calm fury as he entered S.T.A.R. Labs. Last night, he and Dinah Laurel Lance of Earth-2 had finally given in to the feelings that had been building between them for months. It had been a moment that made Oliver feel complete for the first time in almost a year, ever since he had lost Laurel to the cruelty of Damien Darhk. And then Dinah had been snatched cruelly away by a speedster. Thea had had to talk Oliver down from coming to Central City in a homicidal rage to teach a certain arrogant speedster a lesson, pointing out that they didn’t know for sure that it was Barry who had taken Dinah, and that it could be one of his enemies, like the mysterious Savitar, who had done it. Oliver doubted that, as the gold lightning was something that he tended to think was uniquely Barry, but maybe there was something else going on. That didn’t keep him from feeling the calm fury that filled him, because if Team Flash had acted against one of his, then he would be taking action to remind Barry Allen and his team why you did not _fuck_ with Oliver Queen’s loved ones, and Dinah had certainly become that in the months since the Dominator invasion.

Oliver could hear Team Flash joking around in the Cortex as he approached; not only Barry and his two sidekicks, but the Wests as well and a man with a distinctly British accent. Oliver filed away the fact that more and more people seemed to be learning Barry’s identity, which was definitely a mistake on the younger man’s part, but he would just have to learn the hard way that his brand of hopeful trust had it’s drawbacks. The only question was if it would come at the cost of someone Barry cared about, and if it did, whether that would be enough to wake the younger vigilante up to the fact that this life was not some _game_ they were playing, that lives were at risk. Of course, this was all assuming that Barry was _not_ the speedster who had taken Dinah. If he was, well, there would be a reckoning much sooner, and Oliver knew he would target those closest to Barry to send the message that nobody fucked with the people that he cared about.

Oliver stood in the entrance to the Cortex, waiting for someone to notice him. Wally, who had been grinning at some joke Cisco had been telling him, glanced over and then did a double-take. “Mr. Queen?” he asked. “What are you doing here?”

“Oliver?” Barry asked in surprise and a little bit of alarm as he turned to face the man who had once been his inspiration. Things were bitter between them after the incident regarding Dinah Drake framing Dinah Lance for the murder of Felicity Smoak, and Barry had been pushing himself in his training so that he wouldn’t be taken unawares like Oliver had done to him again. “What are you doing here?”

“I’ve come for answers, Barry,” Oliver said calmly. “Funny thing happened in Star City last night. Dinah and I were on patrol, and the feelings that have been building between us for months finally boiled over, and we shared an _intimate_ moment. It should have been a happy occasion, Barry, because for the first time in a long time, I felt _complete_. But it’s not a happy memory, Barry, because just as we pulled away, just as we looked in each other’s eyes and considered the next words we would say, _someone_ who left a trail of gold lightning behind them abducted Dinah right in front of me.” A deathly silence fell over the room as Oliver stepped forward so there was a short distance between he and Barry. An instant later, Oliver’s hand shot out and gripped Barry’s throat. “You wouldn’t happen to know anything about that, now, would you, Barry?”

“I swear, man, we had _nothing_ to do with this,” Barry gasped out. Joe West pulled his gun and aimed it at the crazy man he had warned Barry about his friendship with. It looked like those warnings were finally coming home to roost.

“A grand posture, Detective West, but I have my own back-up,” Oliver said, and from behind him came the suited forms of Arsenal and Speedy, followed by Ragman and Mr. Terrific. Evelyn, of course, was convalescing on Quentin’s couch with her broken arm. “You see, Dinah has become a very integral part of my team, and she saved the lives of two of the people behind me when they were attacked by Dinah Drake, whom the C.C.P.D. _failed_ to apprehend and who was responsible for over a dozen murders-for-hire. So, go ahead, try to put a bullet in me. Ragman will catch the bullet before it can hit, Mr. Terrific will fry the weapon your British friend is trying to surreptitiously arm himself with, and it’ll be a question of speed as to whether it’s Arsenal or Speedy who puts an arrow in you.” Oliver gave Joe a cold smile. “As they say in the movies, go ahead. Make my day. You’ve earned no warm feelings from me with your arrogant attitude over the past three years.”

Slowly, Joe lowered his weapon, as did the British guy, especially when Barry shook his head in warning. Oliver had trained his team well, and they were ready to go at a moment’s notice. Something, Barry reflected bitterly, that his own team wasn’t because they really didn’t _train_ as a team. Oliver nodded shortly. “Good choice,” he said, before turning back to Barry. “Now, I really want to trust you, Barry, but the evidence is against you. But if it really wasn’t you, then you’re going to put that supposedly superior I.Q. of yours to work and find me some answers and a target I can cripple. Sound fair?” Barry nodded rapidly, and Oliver released him. “Good. She was taken while we were on the roof of Palmer Technologies. I’m sure you can access the necessary security feeds, and if not, Mr. Terrific can handle that.” The vigilante in question smiled at the acknowledgement of his skills while Cisco huffed in annoyance that his skills were being dismissed so easily, though he supposed after all of the problems Oliver had had with Team Flash over the past few months, it was to be expected that Oliver would be unnecessarily harsh and disbelieving towards their skills.

“Cisco,” Barry prompted.

“On it,” Cisco said, turning to the computers. He pulled up the required security footage and found the moment of abduction. “Running it through a filter to clear up the image,” he said, letting Oliver and his team know what he was doing. “And… we got a winner. Oh. That’s not good.” Cisco turned to look at Wally West in concern, the youngest West male looking incredibly confused. “Wally… by chance, did you mention to Jesse or Harry that Dinah was walking around free on Earth-1 these days?”

“Um, yeah, I told them about how she helped us out with the Dominators and that she wasn’t all that bad,” Wally said. Iris and Joe looked at each other; they hadn’t realized Wally didn’t share the same attitude about Black Siren that they did, while Barry was staring at his protégé in stunned disbelief. “Why?”

“Because _Jesse_ is the one who kidnapped Dinah,” Cisco said, bringing up the security logs from S.T.A.R. Labs itself, particularly those in the breach room. A few minutes before Dinah’s abduction, a portal had opened, and a streak of lightning exited. A few minutes _after_ the time stamp on Dinah’s abduction, and another portal opened as the lightning streaked back in and through it, the portal closing back in.

“No, she wouldn’t do that,” Wally said. “Or if she did, she didn’t have a choice.”

“I’ll be sure to ask her, before I _cripple_ her,” Oliver said calmly. “Cisco, you’re going to program a breach device to take me to Earth-2 and back. I’m going after Dinah.”

“Not alone, you’re not,” Speedy said. “I’ve already lost her once. I’m not going to again.”

“You can come, Speedy,” Oliver said, before turning his attention to Arsenal, Ragman, and Mr. Terrific. “Neither Speedy nor I exist on Earth-2, so we won’t be affected by the entropy cascade. But we have no idea of the fates of your doppelgangers, and Star City still needs its defenders. Arsenal. Tell Quentin that I’m going to be gone for a while. The excuse is that I had a relapse in my recovery because of everything that’s happened, and I am now being treated at a private psychiatric facility. This will probably mean they activate the city charter and replace me with Quentin, but I think Quentin becoming mayor is a small price to pay for keeping Dinah safe.”

“You got it, Oliver,” Arsenal said.

“I’ll go get my things from the van. Cisco, I expect you to have that breach device ready for me within the hour,” Oliver said, and then turned on his heel and headed out of the Cortex, assured that his team would correct anyone thinking anything but what he had dictated would be happening.

“You, Speedy Gonzales,” Speedy said, pointing at Barry, who started and stared at her in surprise. “You’re gonna take me back to Star City so I can pack a bag. I didn’t expect to be jumping to another Earth when I came here.”

“Uh, okay,” Barry said, speed-changing into The Flash. He approached Speedy warily, and then they were off.

Cisco turned and moved to leave the Cortex. “You’re actually going to do what he asked?” Wally asked in disbelief. “He says he’s going to _cripple_ Jesse!”

“Your girlfriend should’ve thought things through before coming to our Earth and kidnapping one of Oliver’s team,” Arsenal said coldly. “She’s lucky that all that’s happening is maybe getting crippled. If Oliver was still as ruthless as he used to be, she’d be _dead_ for touching someone he cares about.” Wally turned a sickly color at that, and Joe once again reaffirmed in his mind that the team from Star City was full of psychopaths and nutbars and questioned again why Barry considered them friends and wanted to get back in their good graces.

“Also, I don’t want an arrow put in me, because I can tell he’s in one foul mood and is likely to do that if I don’t do what he says,” Cisco said. “Besides, we’ve done enough to Dinah based on our assumptions. Jesse and Harry don’t have the luxury of ignorance like we did. They know what things were like for Dinah and other metahumans and they advocated their return to the custody of authorities on Earth-2, even after Jesse found out she had powers. The only kind of meta they seem unable to stop is speedsters, and the only one with that knowledge now is Harry, whose not going to use that since his daughter’s a speedster.” Cisco turned and headed out of the Cortex. He felt really guilty about all of this and was going to do what he could to help Oliver get Dinah back. He worried his lower lip, wondering why Jesse had done this, and what was happening to Dinah on Earth-2.

**_*DC*_ **

**Earth-2**

Amanda Waller, Director of Special Operations for A.R.G.U.S., was working late in her office when there was a flash of lightning in front of her and she instantly seized a gun, only to find that an unconscious woman was on the ground in front of her, a note pinned to her body, and meta-dampening cuffs around her wrists, which were pulled behind her back. Waller, holding the gun aloft as she circled the desk, nudged the unconscious woman with her foot before rolling her over. Honey blonde hair covered the woman’s face from view, and Waller reached down, brushing the hair out of the way, and smiling coldly as she recognized the face of the woman in front of her. “Well, Miss Lance, finally come back, have we?” she said, picking up the note that had fallen to the side when she rolled Lance over.

_Director Waller. Not all of us are bad. But this one is. Keep her locked up this time._

It was unsigned, but the writing was distinctly feminine, indicating the new speedster that had appeared and was rounding up any meta’s who broke the law and delivering them to the police was a woman. Well, that wouldn’t do; no female metahuman could be allowed to breed. That had been the edict from the White House, and Waller would follow her directives to the letter. She would have to redouble their efforts to find and trap this female speedster. The young woman, and she had to be young to be so hopelessly optimistic, could not be allowed to continue wandering free.

Waller took out her phone and dialed a specific number. “Robert,” she said coolly as the man on the other end picked up. “You won’t believe who was just delivered to me, gift-wrapped, by the new speedster. Dinah Lance.”

There was silence for a long moment, and then… “I’m on my way,” Robert Queen said, a dark brand of eagerness in his voice that had everything to do with his hatred of Dinah Lance.

**_*DC*_ **

**Earth-1**

Green Arrow had kept an eye on Wally West ever since he got back to the Cortex from retrieving his gear from the van. Considering the younger West male was in a relationship with the woman who had kidnapped Dinah, he didn’t trust the younger man not to do something… stupid. Wally had seen the look on the archer’s face and shuddered, remembering his thought months before about how intense Green Arrow was just in casual conversation and that he wouldn’t want to face him in combat after he had defended an unconscious Wally from three well-trained attackers. As a result, Wally made no move to go to Earth-2 to try and warn Jesse. Joe, of course, was not happy with the menacing glare aimed at his son by Star City’s Emerald Archer.

But now the wait was over; Cisco had prepared the breach device Green Arrow had asked for. “Okay, this is going to take you to S.T.A.R. Labs on Earth-2 and will return you to the Bunker here on Earth-1 on your return trip,” Cisco said, handing Green Arrow the device. “I know you’re angry and you got every right to be, but just… just get all the facts before you do anything to Jesse or Harry, okay? It might be that someone figured out Jesse’s secret and forced her to take Dinah in exchange for not getting the same treatment as every other metahuman on Earth-2.”

“ **We’ll see,** ” Green Arrow said shortly. He gestured for Cisco to step out of the way. He turned to look at Arsenal, Ragman, and Mr. Terrific. “ **Keep the city safe. We’ll be back, with Dinah, as soon as possible.** ”

“Good luck, Green Arrow,” Arsenal replied. Green Arrow wasted no more time, activating the breach device. The swirling portal appeared, and both Green Arrow and Speedy stepped through. A moment after they stepped through, Wally made a move towards the portal, and received a red-tinted arrow through the leg for his trouble. He screeched in pain as he went down.

“What the _hell_ did you do that for?” Joe West demanded to know as he knelt next to his son, who was sobbing from the pain of the arrow pierced through his leg, as the portal to Earth-2 closed, ending any chance of Wally or anyone else lending aid to Harry and Jesse Wells in the face of an angered Emerald Archer.

“He was about to make a really dumb move,” Arsenal said with a shrug. “Would you rather it was Green Arrow who put him out of action? Because then, he would probably share whatever fate Green Arrow has planned for this Jesse Wells.”

“I would rather my son not be shot at all!” Joe snapped. “What is it with you archers and shooting my sons!”

Arsenal shrugged and turned to the other two from Star City. “Let’s go. Green Arrow wanted us to keep the city safe.” The trio from Star City left the Cortex. Barry moved to help Joe with the sobbing Wally as Caitlin prepped the medbay.

**_*DC*_ **

**Earth-2**

Dinah screamed as electricity coursed through her body, the meta-dampening bracelet around her wrist shielded against electrical discharges; and even if it failed, there were sonic dampeners in the room in Queen Industries’ Star City headquarters where she was currently being held and tortured. Electricity arced between her white teeth as the electricity coursed through her, and then it was gone. She slumped in place, her breathing ragged and green eyes slightly unfocused. “Why don’t you just kill me?” Dinah rasped out, her vocal cords having been damaged by all the screaming she had done in the past few hours since awakening to the tender mercies of Robert Queen, and a wisp of smoke or steam rising from her body. She was sure she had more than a few electrical burns after how many times Robert had sent electricity coursing through her.

“Oh, I’m going to, Dinah,” Robert said, stepping forward and grabbing her chin, forcing her to look in his eyes. “Believe it or not, it pains me to do this. I still remember the little girl who befriended my son, the young woman who taught him what love was. But you’re not that person anymore, are you, Dinah? You’re heartless, cruel, sadistic, and a hardened terrorist fighting for a lost cause.”

“I wasn’t even on this Earth, Robert,” Dinah shot back croakily. “I was on another Earth, another world, living a new life. I had let go of Black Siren, of the revolution, of everything about this world. I’m not the woman who killed your lover anymore.”

“Somehow, I doubt that,” Robert said. “I’ll give you a few hours to recuperate, and then we’ll be doing something else. I’m thinking those lovely fingernails of yours need pulled out, don’t you? The fingernails you ran so lovingly through my son’s hair before betraying his memory by becoming the Siren?” Robert turned and left the room without saying another word. Dinah closed her eyes, trying to ignore her aching body. The electricity coursing through her had done a real number on her nervous system and her muscles were spasming sporadically. It was probably a sick joke of Robert’s to claim he was allowing her to ‘recuperate’, since there’d be no such thing occurring with the state she was in thanks to Robert’s need to bring as much pain into her world as he possibly could.

Dinah closed her eyes, focusing on evening her breathing out, and as she did so, a flash of the last moment between she and Oliver on Earth-1 went through her mind. Oliver’s eyes had been so full of love, of tender care, that for a moment, Dinah’s heart had fluttered just a little. In some ways, she felt she was betraying the memory of the Oliver that she had lost; but in mostly, she recognized that both she and Oliver had lost the one they loved and while they weren’t the exact same, they were stronger versions of the ones they loved and could stand on equal footing with each other. Laurel Lance had struggled with the lifestyle Oliver had chosen, while Dinah’s Oliver had planned to coast through life, despite his girlfriend’s ambitions. But Earth-1’s Oliver had the same drive to him that she had, the same need to protect people even if they didn’t appreciate the sacrifices made. Oliver had managed to reawaken that side of her when he asked for her help against the Dominators and proved he was a friend and not just using her when he had taken Red and later Felicity Smoak to task.

_I’ll get out of here,_ Dinah told herself firmly. _I won’t break under Robert’s torture. I’m going to get out of here and get back to the man that I love, the man who’s my partner in every way that matters._

**_*DC*_ **

Green Arrow wasted no time as he and Speedy came out of the breach to find Jesse Quick (as she called herself) and her father waiting with a group of people. Green Arrow fired one of his basic lethal arrows right off the bat, aiming at Harry Wells. Like he had suspected, Jesse moved to intercept, and that just as she snagged his arrow out of the air and saved Wells from having an arrow through the shoulder, another arrow pierced through her calf from the side, ripping the muscle and eliciting a scream of agony from the young woman. Green Arrow and Speedy quickly deployed bolo arrows to contain the rest of the ‘greeting party’ and then approached Wells and Jesse, the former of whom was trying to put pressure on the wound without exacerbating the pain his daughter was in. Wells looked up at them, glaring angrily. “What the _hell_ is this?” he snapped.

“ **Retribution, Harrison Wells,** ” Green Arrow said softly, grabbing Wells by the front of his shirt and hauling him away from Jesse, throwing him away from her. Speedy covered Wells, who raised his hands in surrender. “ **Your daughter made a foolish mistake last night. Like Barry Allen, she is a speedster who thinks that because she has powers, she has somehow been granted god-like authority. Let’s just say I’m the one who reminds all gods that they have an Achilles hill.** ” Green Arrow crouched and gripped the shaft of the arrow in Jesse’s leg, twisting it. The young woman screamed in pain. “ **I am only going to ask this once, Jesse Wells, before I get really creative,** ” Green Arrow said softly. “ ** _Where_ is Dinah Lance, and why did you take her when she was no threat to your world?**”

Jesse Wells had been held captive by the speedster Zoom for nearly a year, had been put into a coma when the attempt to give Barry Allen his powers back had backfired, the same attempt that had granted her speedster abilities as well, but the one thing she had never dealt with was pain like that being inflicted on her. Zoom’s torture had been primarily psychological. So, when this archer implied something far worse if she didn’t answer his questions, she sobbed out, “A.R.G.U.S.! I gave her to A.R.G.U.S.! And she was tricking you! That’s what people like her do!”

“ **You mean people desperate for the chance to live a normal life?** ” Green Arrow said coldly. “ **People whose only crime is to be born with the metahuman gene, like _you_ , Jesse Wells?**” Jesse flinched at the condemnation and gave another scream as he twisted the arrow in her leg further. “ **I would turn you over to A.R.G.U.S. myself, let you see how those you’ve been rounding up and handing over to them live for yourself, see the price of your so-called heroism. But the irony here, Miss Wells, is that Dinah _wouldn’t_ want you to suffer as she has. That’s because as cold and calculating as she seemed, all she was, was a compassionate woman who was nearly destroyed by the way humans treated her and her kind. But she has _earned_ her redemption. When she was forced to kill to defend others recently, she wondered if she had sacrificed her chance at redemption. I told her she hadn’t, right before _you_ snatched her away.**” Green Arrow twisted the arrow again, eliciting another scream.

“Stop!” Wells shouted. “You’ve got what you wanted you’ve made your point! Let me daughter go. Please.”

“ **So long as she understands that once we’ve freed Dinah and returned to Earth-1 with her, she is _out_ of your arrogant daughter’s jurisdiction,**” Green Arrow growled, bending the arrow upward. Jesse sobbed out assent. “ **Good,** ” Green Arrow said softly. “ **If I have to come back to Earth-2 because you’ve messed with my team for a second time, it won’t be an arrow through the leg but through the heart. This is your second chance, Jesse Wells. I do not grant third chances.** ”

Green Arrow and Speedy left he breach room in S.T.A.R. Labs, and found it was early morning. They located a suitable car, one that was fast and would get them to Star City quickly and hotwired it. The thing about being vigilantes was that such criminal acts as hotwiring a car were sometimes necessary.

**_*DC*_ **

Amanda Waller sat calmly behind her desk as the two archers who had managed to get through her security stepped over the twitching and moaning forms of her personal detail. “This is an unexpected development,” she mused.

“ **Where is Dinah Lance?** ” the green-clad archer, which forcibly reminded her of Robert Queen’s early days before he abandoned his vigilante pursuits, growled.

“Now, why would I go and tell someone who is clearly one of her allies where she is being held?” Waller asked. “What have I to gain from it?”

“ **There is more than one Earth, Waller,** ” the green-clad archer said. “ **Dinah has been living on our Earth for nearly a year, and the past few months she has been working with us. She could have returned to Earth-2 and started the revolution all over again. She chose to stay on Earth-1, to stop fighting for a cause that couldn’t hope to win under the current circumstances. She had found a new life, and a new purpose, on an Earth where metahumans aren’t outlawed. The interference of the female speedster forced this choice upon us. I worked with you on our Earth; I respect you and I know you are quite proud of your ability to turn off your humanity. So, you ask what you have to gain? If you push Dinah back into the abyss, you’ll restore the Black Siren and one day, she’ll escape from captivity and start the revolution you so fear anew. Is that truly what you want?** ”

Waller was silent. She knew about the multiverse, of course; Harrison Wells had informed her of Earth-1 and the existence of a world where metahumans weren’t appropriately caged, collared, and neutered. He had also told her about the fact that Earth-1 had many differences, including who wore the green hood. “You have made a fair point, _Mr. Queen,_ ” she said, and the Emerald Archer stirred. “Yes, I’m aware of who you are. Harrison Wells was most informative about the multiverse. Another threat that A.R.G.U.S. will have to monitor. If you truly believe you can keep Dinah Lance on your Earth, than I see no reason to risk another revolution by keeping her here. Dinah Lance is currently being held in a special room on the 24th floor of Queen Industries, where your father from this Earth is having his fun before ending her life.”

“ **Glad we could do this without torture,** ” the Emerald Archer said before turning and going with his red-clad sidekick. Waller watched them go impassively and made a mental note to have the security assigned to this building go through a refresher course. The fact that two archers got all the way to her office was atrociously sloppy on the part of her so-called security, especially with the threat from the Dark Archer ever-present.

**_*DC*_ **

Green Arrow and Speedy stood on top of a building across from Queen Industries’ headquarters, both feeling a sense of nostalgia seeing the building that, in their world, was Palmer Technologies with the name Queen emblazoned on it. “Makes me kinda miss what we used to be, Ollie,” Speedy told her brother softly.

“ **I know, Speedy,** ” Green Arrow said, tilting his head. “ **We have company.** ” The brother and sister archers turned as one and found the Dark Archer, in full League of Assassins regalia, standing only a few feet from them, bow drawn taught and an arrow aimed directly at Green Arrow’s heart.

“ ** _An interesting occurrence,_** ” the Dark Archer said. “ ** _I come to free a friend from the Hood’s clutches and find a copycat and a sidekick. Who are you, and what is your interest in Queen Industries?_** ”

“ **The same as yours,** ” Green Arrow said, stepping forward with his bow raised in one hand. “ **Dinah Lance. This may be difficult to understand. I barely understand it myself. But there are multiple worlds out there, multiple Earths. For nearly a year, Dinah has been on our Earth, and for the past few months, she has been living and working with us, to protect the people of our Star City.** ”

“ ** _That_ does _sound like Dinah,_** ” the Dark Archer said. “ ** _But why should I trust you?_** ”

The question reverberated in Green Arrow’s mind and he remembered Dinah mentioning that the Merlyns had both been killed and Tommy had been brought up by the Queens. An angry, bitter man who had lost everything might well turn to the path of the League to find a purpose in life. Green Arrow made a split-second decision. He turned off his voice modulator, then pulled down his mask and hood. The Dark Archer lowered his arrow, staring at Oliver Queen in disbelief. “Because,” Oliver said, “on this Earth and the one where I come from, you always have… Tommy.” Speedy gasped and stared at the Dark Archer, who slowly reached up and pulled his cowl away to reveal the bearded features of Tommy Merlyn.

“Oliver,” Tommy whispered in shock. He swallowed for a moment. “So, that stuff you said, about other worlds? It was all true?”

“It is, Tommy,” Oliver said. “Dinah and I have become… close, and she told me a few things, like how you taught her how to fight after the _Gambit_ went down, helped her channel her grief into something productive. She’s one hell of a fighter, Tommy. You should be proud.”

Tommy chuckled ruefully. “Even when you’re from different worlds, it’s always the two of you, isn’t it?” Tommy asked. “Oliver and Dinah, now and forever.”

“I suppose so,” Oliver said after a moment. “I’m guessing you were part of the Undertaking on this Earth.” Tommy nodded shortly. “I can’t say I’m not surprised. You lost your parents, and you wanted revenge, and Ra’s al Ghul helps many lost souls find a path. While normally you would be someone I would try to stop, in this case, we have the same goal: stop my dimensional father from torturing and killing a woman we both love. At least, that’s why I assume you’re here; the Tommy I knew had loved Laurel, as we called her on my Earth, for years but done nothing since she and I were together. That didn’t stop him from sacrificing himself to save her when Malcolm unleashed the Undertaking on my world.”

“My father’s alive on your world?” Tommy asked softly.

“He’s my Dark Archer, yes,” Oliver said with a nod. “The more we stand here talking about differences in our worlds, the closer Dinah gets to death. One person with League training might be enough to save Dinah, but three of us with the same training? Whatever Robert has won’t stand a chance against us. I would guess you have the same feud with Robert that I have with Malcolm.” Tommy nodded shortly. “Then I’ll leave you to your feud. We’ll get Dinah out of here and back to our world. Does that sound good to you, Tommy?”

“It does,” Tommy said, before replacing his cowl. “ ** _Let’s get to work,_** ” the Dark Archer said, and Oliver replaced his own hood and mask. The three archers moved to the edge of the roof and drew zipline arrows, firing with precision so they embedded themselves just above the windows of the 24th floor. “ ** _Once we’re inside, I’ll take the lead,_** ” the Dark Archer said. “ ** _I know where they’re keeping her._** ”

“ **Agreed,** ” Green Arrow replied, and then they began their descend, using their bows to glide down the zipline and then smash through the windows. Dark Archer took the lead, Green Arrow following behind while Speedy watched their backs, all three with bows drawn and ready to fire. The three archers made their way towards the center of the building, towards the room where Dinah had to be held. They arrived at a corridor outside of the room, which was filled with guards. They could hear Dinah screaming in agony, and Green Arrow’s grip tightened on his bow before he unleashed a magnetic arrow, stripping the guards of their weapons. The Dark Archer fired off arrows rapidly, going for the kill shots: heart, throat, and eye. Speedy and Green Arrow fired off bolo arrows, grimacing when the Dark Archer used his sword to cut their throats while they were helpless but knowing there was no point in arguing the point, not when Dinah’s life was on the line.

As the last guard fell, body spasming, Green Arrow drew and fired an explosive arrow, which blew the door ahead of them off of it’s hinges and, from the sound of the pained grunt, struck a man standing just inside of the door. Dark Archer, Green Arrow, and Speedy entered the room to find the person who had been hit with the door was Robert Queen himself, who looked up at them in disbelief and anger. “So, finally found some lackeys to do your dirty work for you, Merlyn?” he spat.

“ ** _Why don’t you show him?_** ” Dark Archer asked Green Arrow. “ ** _I want to see his face._** ” Green Arrow rolled his eyes at this sign of humor from his dimensional best friend but did as asked, removing his mask and good. Robert’s eyes widened at seeing his son standing there, whole and healthy.

“I would do something to you for what you have been doing to Dinah,” Oliver said softly, staring down coldly at the man who had killed his doppelganger for wanting to get back to Dinah, “but I’ve already told Tommy I would leave you to him.” He moved passed the downed form of his dimensional father, Speedy following him, and the two vigilantes undid the restraints, trying to restrain their anger at the swollen, bloody messes her fingers were. Tear tracks could be seen on her cheeks, but Dinah still smiled, a bit dazily, but smiled nonetheless.

“Fitting, that my two boys join forces to save me from that bastard,” Dinah said as Oliver pulled her up into a bridal style carry. Dinah leaned into Oliver’s chest. “Take me home, Ollie.”

“I’ve got you, pretty bird,” Oliver said, nodding to his sister, who pulled out the extrapolator and activated it. Oliver, Speedy, and Dinah disappeared through the breach without a backwards glance.

Tommy looked down at Robert with a twisted smile on his face. “What do you know?” he said. “We’ve got a torture room all set up. Nighty-night, Robert.” He delivered a blow to Robert’s temple with his bow, knocking the older man out, and then set to work getting Robert into the same position as Dinah had been. But this time, no one would be coming to save him.

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: I hope everyone enjoyed the story.
> 
> I considered having a scene following up on Oliver, Dinah, and Thea’s return to Earth-1, but I felt that the way they left, with Oliver saying he had her and calling her pretty bird, was too good of an ending and anything more would be superfluous.


End file.
